Currently Untitled
by strausse
Summary: One moment of weakness, one mistake is all it takes to change lives forever...
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Yes, it's true, your eyes do not deceive, and the world has not come to an end. After a hiatus of... a very long time, I have posted. I have no excuse, I simply could not bring myself to write for whatever reason. Hope you enjoy, it's pretty dark.

Disclaimer: Teen Titans do not belong to me, nor am I on staff at DC, Cartoon Network, or any other entity that may claim ownership of said show. On that note, if you are looking for staff writers...

Currently Untitled

Chapter 1

Raven looked up with fear at the white clad form that seemed to tower over her and winced at the sensation of something cold and hard moving inside of her. She sighed as she allowed her head to fall back to the thin pillow, thinking back over the last couple of months, to the events that led to this moment, lying on a cold steel table, and feeling so alone.

_Raven opened her door a crack to the sound of knocking. Beastboy stood outside her door, shifting his weight from one foot to the other nervously. "What?"_

_"Raven? Look, I-I'm sorry."_

"_For what? You're not the one who." Raven broke off, afraid to say more, afraid that she would not be able to hide the sudden flood of emotion._  
_"No, I'm sorry that... he broke your heart."_

_Raven closed her eyes at his words, well intentioned, though they stung. "I know it was all a lie, but he was the only person that made me feel like I wasn't... creepy. And don't try to tell me I'm not." Raven stared at the shape shifter standing uncomfortably outside of her room. She wondered why she had said that, opening up even a little to the single most annoying member of the titans._

_"Okay, fine, you're way creepy, but that doesn't mean you have to stay locked in your room. You think your alone, Raven, but you're not." Raven was given pause by what he said. For so long, she separated herself, and now he, the immature brat, was coming to console her._

_Without thinking, without considering anything for once, Raven stepped out of her room and fell against Beastboy, wrapping her arms around him in her first hug in a long time. Beastboy stiffened, surprised at her rare display of affection, but quickly returned the hug, holding her tightly._

_After their brief hug, Beastboy pushed Raven back to arms length. A strange emotion seems to cross his face, "Raven, I..." Whatever he was about to say is cut off by a ball of rancid socks. _

_"Boo-Yah! Stankball!"_

_Raven turns to see the jubilant Cyborg still standing in the end of the hall way, one fist raised in victory. She picks up the ball with distaste and immediately it begins to glow black with her power. _

_"Now hold on, Raven, don't get..." he is in turn cut off when Raven plasters him to the wall with his sock ball._

_Raven sighs as she turns back to see Beastboy climbing to his feet. "Could we finish this in private?" She asks gesturing to her room._

_"Wait, you mean like in your room."_

_"Yeah."_

_"With no yelling at me, or throwing me out the window."_

_"As long as you don't do anything stupid."_

_"Cool." _

_On impulse, Raven grabbed his hand. She almost dropped it immediately, this was not her, something was seriously wrong with this situation. As quickly as it comes, the feeling of wrongness is gone, as she leads Beastboy into her room."_

Raven hissed at sudden pain, deep inside of her. "What was that?"

The man standing at the foot of the table glanced up at her briefly then back down. "Nothing to worry about. We should be almost done here."

Raven let her head drop back to the table, once again lost in her own thoughts.

_Raven woke to the sound of soft snoring, and saw Beastboy lying next to her in bed. The sheets were pulled half way up his bare chest, and when she sat up suddenly, she realized that she was wearing nothing. _

_She held the sheet to her own chest as she looked around the room, seeing their clothes scattered about haphazardly. She tried to cast her memory back, but most of the last few hours were nothing but a blur. "What did we do?"_

_Beastboy, awakened by her movements now sat up and looked around. "I'd say that it looks like we..."_

_"Shut up." Raven snapped._

_Beastboy turned to her, concern now in his features. "What's wrong?"_

_"This- this should never have happened." Raven was beginning to sound almost panicked as she spoke. "We shouldn't have done this, this was a mistake. We're just going to forget this ever happened, never mention it again. Just like it never happened."_

_ "Fine, if it was so horrible for you or whatever, I'll just go." He scooped up his pants and pulled them on hard. "You'll never have to think about it again."_

_"No, that's not- It wasn't horrible, it..." Raven was fighting tears now, and Beastboy saw, felt, her inner turmoil._

_He sat back on the edge of the bed and gently took her hand. "What is it?"_

_"I wanted to wait, I wanted my first time..." Raven burst into teats, unable to continue._

_Beastboy wrapped his arms around Raven, pulling her into his chest. He held her for several minutes, waiting until her tears had slowed. Finally he spoke. "Wait then, don't let one stupid mistake ruin everything."_

_"But..."_

_"No buts, one stupid mistake shouldn't ruin everything, okay?"_

_"O-okay."_

_"I don't know where we'll be in three or four or however many years before I'm ready to get hitched, but Raven, I love you."_

_Raven sat up suddenly. "What?"_

_"I love you, and if we're still together when I grow up, then maybe it will be you and me forever."_

_"Did-did you just propose to me?"_

_Beastboy shrugged. "Let's just take it a step at a time for now, and see where we end up." Beastboy stood. "We'll take it slow, a date tonight..." he turned and glanced at her clock, "Tomorrow night, just you and me." Beastboy stooped down and kissed Raven gently on the cheek. "Alright?"_

_"Beastboy, I... thank you."_

And now... and now this. Raven wished, not for the first time, that she had been able to find the courage to tell him when she found out about the baby. A ragged sob escaped her suddenly. Until that point she had managed to refrain from thinking of it that way, but now she could not stop the sudden horror at what she was doing. For a moment, she considered telling the doctor to stop, but no, it was already too late.

All thoughts ceased at a sudden terrible pain, burning deep within her. The doctor swore quietly, but emphatically. "What's wrong?" Raven's voice shook with pain.

"It'll be alright, just a minor complication." He swore again and said something to a nurse that Raven could not here. The nurse ran from the room.

"What's goi..." she trailed off as the room began to spin. "What... wha..." Darkness enclosed her, cradled her, smothered her.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

_Click-click-click-click._ Raven slowly opened her eyes to the sight of a grandmotherly figure sitting near her bed... knitting. She started to sit up, but was stopped by an intense wave of pain that tore through her stomach. en tears, and managed to hold back all but a sob. The older woman looked up, then set aside her knitting. "Now, now, dear, don't try to sit up. You just got out of surgery, and I must say they did a number on you." She walked to Raven's bedside and smiled down at her. "No why don't you let me take a look, make sure you didn't tear any stitches out."

"Um... Who are you?"

"Oh yes, silly me. I'm Dr. Kain. I'm your doctor for as long as you're here."

"Where is here, and why am I here?"

Dr. Kain examined Raven quickly. "It looks as though you didn't tear anything out. You are at Jump Mercy. You are here because there were some compl..." The doctor fell silent as she grimaced. "I will not lie for those people. The clinic you were at botched the abortion. They sacrifice safety in order to get as many frightened young girls such as yourself in and out as possible."

Raven fought down her swelling panic. "How badly?"

"They lost you, twice."

"What do you mean, lost?"

"Your heart stopped as a result of massive hemorrhaging. They tried to repair the damage done, but there was too much."

"What did they do?"

"The only thing to do in this case. They- they had to perform a hysterectomy."

"A hys- you mean, I can't..." Raven fell silent, fighting to control the tide of emotions swelling in her. Black tendrils of energy flickered ominously of the guard rails of her bed."

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." Dr. Kain stood and turned to the door, "I'm going to go get one of the hospital's councilors for you to..."

"No. I just want to go home." Raven had managed to control herself to a point, though her voice still quavered.

Dr. Kain turned back to her. "You are going to be here for a week. Even when you leave, you will need another two or three weeks of bed rest. The surgeons were not gentle when they opened you up, they were in too much of a hurry to be careful."

"I can heal myself be tonight. I'm leaving then."

Dr. Kain seemed about to respond, but then sighed. "Just... just let me examine you before you go, alright?"

"Fine."

"I've got rounds, I'll be back to check on you."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Raven woke from her healing trance and sat up. She was looked around the small hospital room and saw Dr. Kain dozing in a nearby chair. Deciding not to wake her, Raven quietly flew out of the bed and changed back into the street clothes that she had worn to the clinic. "I thought you were going to let me examine you, before you left."

Raven spun at the sound of Dr. Kain's voice. She was sitting upright in the chair now, wide awake. "Um, sorry. I didn't want to bother you."

"Come here, let me take a look." Dr. Kain briefly examined her. "Not even a scar." She shook her head. "I can't stop you from leaving, but..." She dug around in the pockets of her coat, and pulled out a business card. She wrote something on the back, and handed it to Raven. "That's my home number as well. If you need me, for anything, just call. Understand?"

"Alright."

"Go, then, and be well."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Raven flew to her room's unlocked window and stepped in. It was already late, and the tower was silent, the rest of the team already asleep. Raven sat down on the edge of her bed, then puled her legs under her into the lotus position. She closed her eyes, trying to will away her raging emotions, trying to deny the tear that threatened to escape again.

A knock on her door brought her back to the present. Beastboy's voice was slightly muffled through the door, "Raven? I thought I saw you fly in."

Raven took a deep breath, steeling herself to see him. "Yeah, come on in." Raven stood as the door slid open. Beastboy crossed the room quickly, sweeping her up in a tight hug, giving her a short, chaste kiss. "What are you still doing up?" Raven asked, giving him a smile that she did not feel.

"Couldn't sleep. You were supposed to be back yesterday, and I was worried."

"A little trouble getting everything sorted out."

"You never did tell me what you had to go for."

"Just some family business, nothing you need to worry about."

"Alright." He pulled away to yawn expansively. "It's late, isn't it?"

"Almost two."

"I need to get some sleep." He kissed her again, "I'll see you in the morning."

"Alright, good night."

Beastboy stepped back out into the hall and allowed the door to start closing behind him. At the last moment, stopped it and leaned back in. And Raven?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

For a moment, Raven was unable to respond. Her feelings of guilt at betraying Beastboy's trust, at lying to him outright prevented her. Finally she was able to respond with what she hoped was a steady voice, "I-I love you too."


	2. Tears in the Night

Currently Untitled

Chapter 2

Raven sat up quickly. Her heart pounded in her chest, in time with the painful pounding in her forehead. She had been running, from something or maybe to something. Claws, and a scream. She shook her head, trying to dispel the last vestiges of her nightmare. A knock on her door provided a welcome distraction.

Raven threw a robe on over her nightgown before she opened her door, revealing Beastboy, carrying a tray of food. "Um, hi." She said, almost sheepishly. "What's all this?"

"You got in late last night, so we let you sleep in. This is breakfast."

"Sleep in? What time is it?"

"Lunch time, almost. It's like eleven thirty."

Raven's eyebrows shot up. "You let me sleep that long?"

"Yeah, you needed it."

She started to turn back into her room, "You shouldn't have..." She trailed off as the smell of hot food hit her. "What did you bring me?"

"Waffles with strawberries, tea, and maple syrup. Not the fake stuff either, real maple syrup. I've been hiding it in my sock drawer."

"Scary thought. Come on in." Raven stepped aside and let Beastboy walk in and gently set the tray down on her bed. Raven settled cross legged on one side of the tray, and Beastboy attempted to mimic her, but failed.

"Don't know how you do that." He muttered after settling for simply dangling his legs off the edge.

"Long years of practice." Raven said, pulling the plat of waffles toward her. She hadn't eaten since before she went to the clinic two days earlier. With her healing trance, and the emotional upset, she hadn't noticed her hunger.

After Raven had finished half of the waffles that Beastboy had brought her, he spoke. "So, uh, where did you go anyway? All you said was that some family stuff came up, then you just kinda... disappeared."

The reminder of her last couple of days sent a pang of sharp pain through her. She dropped her fork on her plate, no longer hungry, and picked up her mug of tea. "Just what I said, family stuff. It's not really that important."

"If you're sure."

"I am."

Beastboy stretched with a sigh. "Robin asked me to take care of some stuff today, but do you wanna go out tomorrow?"

"Sure, what time?"

"Dunno. Evening I guess."

"I won't make any plans."

"Cool." Beastboy stood and walked to her door. "I'll see you later." Beastboy started to step out when he froze and leaned back in, "And I love you."

"You don't have to say that every time you leave the room, you know."

"Yes, I do."

"Why?"

"Because, I know that you hide something from us." Raven's breath caught in her throat when he said this. "You're not just the confident loner that you always showed us, there's somebody there hiding inside you that wants to know she's loved, wants somebody to show it to her. And the only person who's ever showed her what she wanted hurt her."

"That doesn't mean..."

"Yeah, it does. Every time I leave for whatever reason, I'm going to say it. And you can know that if I say it, I mean it."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Beastboy studied Raven from across the small booth they shared. She stared down at her food, picking at it with her fork, though she didn't seem to have eaten any of it. "Is something bothering you?"

Raven looked up sharply at the sound of his voice. "What?"

"You haven't said much tonight, and you're not really eating. Is something wrong?"

"Nope, just not sleeping well, I guess."

"Are you not feeling well? I know Cyborg wouldn't mind..."

"No!" Raven froze, stunned by her own outburst. The last thing she needed was for Cyborg to examine her, to find out the truth. "I mean, it's just a bit of insomnia. I'll be fine."

"If you're sure."

"Very."

They ate in silence for several minutes. "Look, sometimes insomnia can mean something serious, you know? What if..."

"Why don't we go to a movie after this? I'll let you pick."

For just a moment, Beastboy's concern warred with his short attention span. His attention span won out. "There's this little theater, downtown, that's playing this really old movie that looked really good. It was something like Jesus Christ Versus the Aliens."

"What?"

"Yeah, no kidding. Sounds like it should be good."

"Super." Raven turned her attention back to her plate, and her thoughts inward as Beastboy began giving her a more detailed description of the movie.

Pain seemed to fill her. Objectively, she knew that it was psychological. She had been through something that was, to say the least, traumatic. Therefore, she was manifesting this pain, as though something was eating her from the inside out. She knew this, yet she couldn't escape the feeling that she had become... a black hole.

Raven jumped when the thought hit her. It didn't feel right, as though it had come from somewhere else, and given to her. She shook her head dispelling the notion; though she had lied about being alright, she hadn't lied about not sleeping well, every few hours waking, stifling a scream in response to whatever nightmare now plagued her. That was bound to mess with anyone's nerves.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Beastboy and Raven now stood in the hallway near her door. They were back late, after the showing of the horrifyingly weird movie that Beastboy had chosen. The faced each other and kissed, gently, chastely, before Beastboy pulled back with a smile. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Yeah." Raven smiled back at him, though she no longer felt like smiling. "See you in the morning." Raven hit the button that would open her door and started to step in.

"Hey, Raven?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

Raven's smile faltered. The simple phrase had brought a complex assortment of emotions to her since the first time she heard it. Now, though, they were dominated by self-loathing, knowing that she had lied, and continued to lie, to him every time she was with him, every time she told him that nothing was wrong. She found herself having to force herself to reply in a tone that she hoped was convincing. "I- I love you too."

As soon as he was gone, the door closed and locked securely, Raven collapsed on her bed. Suppressed tears that seemed to always lurk beneath the surface burst forth in great sobs. Soon she quieted, her tears spent for the time being.

As on every night since her return to the hospital, Raven found her attention drifting to her knives. She studied the glittering light falling from the blades, most dull display knives, though a few were razor sharp.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Raven was awakened. This time, instead of terror waking her, it was a sound. She lay still until she heard it again, a knock at her door. Raven pulled herself out of bed, every movement a small pain.

She felt as though she had been beaten badly. She was stiff, her joints ached, her head throbbed. She didn't want to deal with whoever was on the other side of the door.

She pulled on a black silk robe and belted it around her waist before she opened the door. Beastboy stood on the other side, looking suspiciously chipper this early in the morning. When he caught sight of her, though, his smile fell. "What happened to you? You look like death warmed over."

"Gee thanks." Raven leaned back into the room far enough to see her reflection in her vanity mirror. Her hair was a tangled mess, dark puffy rings were under her eyes, and her skin was a more pallid shade than usual. "I do look bad, don't I?"

"Maybe you should talk to Cyborg."

"No. It's just a bug or something. I'll sleep it off."

"Okay, I guess." He still seemed unsure.

"Was there something you wanted?"

"Well, I was just getting you for breakfast."

Raven looked back at her clock. It was already nine thirty, she had slept in several hours longer than she liked. "I think I slept through my alarm."

"Maybe that was a good thing. I'll tell Robin that you're not fit for training."

"Sure, thanks. I'm gonna go back to bed for a while."

"Alright, sweet dreams."


	3. A Nightmare

A/N: I'm not sure when in the series Terra showed up in relation to the episode Spellbound. If I've got it backward, oh well.

Untitled

Chapter 3

Raven was running. One arm swept the branches of the trees that ran close to the narrow twisted trail that she ran on out of her way, her other arm was held closely to her distended belly. She stopped running, confused as strange thoughts, memories filtered through her mind. "I-I can't... " She looked down and ran her hand over the curve of her belly.

A sound in the woods brought her back to her senses; something was after her, something was after her baby. She took off down the trail again, moving as fast as she could without risking a fall. She could see up ahead where a clearing was. If she could only get there, into the light, she would be safe.

A dark form dropped out of the trees in front of her, bringing her up short. She backed quickly into a tree, pressing herself into the shadow of it, hoping in vain to not be seen. The dark figure turned to her, and she gasped as she saw four glowing red eyes peered out of a red cloak. Tendrils of dark energy whipped through the air in front of her, displacing dead leaves in their path. "But, you- you can't be here, you-"

The personification of Raven's rage shot forward, lightning fast, and lifted Raven easily with one hand, slamming her into the tree. "Why do you run? You want to be rid of it, don't you? Now you're running away from me?" She lifted one hand revealing claws glinting off the moonlight. "You gave it up, it's mine now."

"No! Please, don't! Leave my baby alone!"

Tendrils shot out, pinning Raven's arms and legs to the tree, and freeing Rage's other hand as well. "I'm only taking what you want to be rid of."

Raven screamed as Rage's claws flashed, pain bit through her belly. When she felt cold hands gripping her arms, and the freeing of her hands, she struck out, her fingers bent into claws. "Leave my baby alone!"

"Raven, girl, come on hon, calm down and wake up."

Raven woke slowly, opening her eyes to see Cyborg looming over her. It was his cold hands that she felt on her arms. His human eye was filled with concern. "Are you okay now, girl?"

"I-I…" She burst into tears, and fell against Cyborg sobbing loudly.

"It'll be okay, Rae."

"No, I…" Despite awakening, her stomach still burned in pain. She laid one hand against it and felt a slick warmth. "I'm blee…" she trailed off as her vision started to blur and darkness overcame her.

Another form filled her doorway, Beastboy's. "Raven? Cyborg, what's going on?" He rushed into the room and to Raven's bedside. "What happened?"

"Come on, let's get her to the infirmary." Cyborg started to pick her up, but Beastboy stopped him, Lifting her unconscious form and cradling her against him.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"Is she gonna be okay? What's wrong with her? Why won't sh-"

"Shut up and let me work, grass stain." Cyborg hit a few buttons on the control panel in front of him and a scanner dropped down. After only a few moments the scanner had done it's work and Cyborg was looking over the results. "She exhausted, that's all. Go make a pot of tea for her."

"I wanna stay…"

"Go get her some tea. She'll want it when she wakes up."

Beastboy looked down at Raven's still form for another moment before he backed out of the door.

"You want to talk about it?" Cyborg waited a moment, studying his monitors. "I know you're awake, Raven."

"No."

Cyborg snorted, "Too bad, you're gonna." Cyborg grabbed a handful of first aid supplies from a shelf and dropped them on a table near Raven's bed. "How long ago was it?"

"About a week."

"Gotten a good nights sleep yet?"

"No."

"Didn't think so." He gently pulled up the hem of her shirt and started cleaning several long, shallow scratches on her stomach. "These don't look too bad. You probably did it in your sleep." He fell silent while he finished cleaning, then bandaging her scratches. "Does he know?"

"No."

"He should, a relationship needs...

"I know, Cyborg."

"Just saying." He dumped the packaging and left over gauze in a nearby trash can. "I can tell him for you, if you want..."

For a moment Raven was tempted to take him up on the offer. "N-no, I have to."

"When you're ready, but the longer you wait, the harder it'll be."

"I know."

Cyborg pulled a syringe and bottle from a rack on the wall. "I'm going to give you something to help you sleep, you can worry about it tomorrow."

"No, I want- need to tell him now."

"Are you sure? You've been under a lot of stress the last week."

"I need to tell him before… before I lose my courage."

"You're the last person I expected to here that from." He sat the bottle and syringe on the bedside table. "If you say so, but you need rest. As soon as you're done talking to him, I am going to give you that."

"Whatever." Raven sat up, pulling her knees under her chin.

Cyborg sat in a chair next to the bed. "This might not be the best time, but I'm surprised, Rae. Thought you two, well, I thought you were smarter than to be doin' that, you're only sixteen."

"It only happened once, and it wasn't exactly planned or anything, I…" She trailed off, trying to piece the memories of that night back together. "I don't know, it's fuzzy. I was hurt, it was just after Melchior left, and Beastboy was there for me. We were talking, but… I-I don't remember how it happened."

The door slid open and Beastboy came in with a mug of tea. "You're awake!" The mug almost slipped out of his hand, spilling most of it on the floor as he crossed the room. "Are you okay? I was…"

Cyborg stepped between Beastboy and Raven and took the mug. "She's been under a lot of stress, so stay calm, got that?"

"Uh, yeah, sure."

"I'll be out in the hall." He stepped out of the room and let the door slide closed behind him.

"What's goin' on?" Beastboy turned back to Raven. "What's wrong?"

"Beastboy, I am- was…" She closed her eyes, willing away her tears. "I was pregnant."

Beastboy's eyes widened. "Raven, that- you're pre…" He trailed off as her words sank in fully. "Was pregnant? What happened?"

"I was- I was afraid, I…" She sobbed suddenly, barely able to hold it together, but managing to so she could say what she need to say. "When I left, a week ago, I went into the city, to a clinic, I…"

"No, you-you wouldn't..."

Raven looked up as Beastboy fell silent. She was prepared for just about anything, but not the look of despair that crossed his face. She had betrayed him, lied to him, and she deserved whatever would come next.

Beastboy's despair vanished in an instant, consumed by a dark rage. His muscles tightened, his fists clenched. He wanted, no needed to hit something, to relieve the terrible pressure growing within him. Raven flinched as his fist arced around, and impacted the solid metal wall with a sharp thud.

The door slammed open, and Cyborg stepped in, ready to deal with the worst. Before he could say anything, Beastboy had fled the room, heading for the roof access.

He looked from Beastboy's retreating form, to Raven. She was crying silently, and curling up on her side, bringing her knees under her chin.

"That didn't go too well."

"It's okay, though." Raven's voice was steady despite the tears, almost eerily calm.

"What do you mean?"

"He hates me now, but that's okay. I didn't deserve him in the first place."

"Raven, don't say that. First off, I can't see Beastboy hatin' you, it's just not in him. Second, you're a wonderful person, Rae. Yeah, you screwed up, but that doesn't change the kind of person you are."

"None of it matters, I've got nothing left so it doesn't matter anymore."

"I'll be right back." Cyborg growled as he turned, following Beastboy's path to the roof.

On the roof a moment later, he saw Beastboy sitting on the edge overlooking the ocean. "Hey, man."

"She…" Beastboy's voice cracked and failed him.

"I know."

"I…" He trailed off.

Cyborg settled down next to Beastboy. "How do you feel?"

"I'm mad. For a moment, I just… I needed to get out of there before I did something… that I would regret."

"Smart thing to do. Calmed down some?"

Beastboy held up his hand, now swollen and discolored. "The pain seems to be clearing my head."

"Wondered what that bang was. You hate her for what she did?"

"No, I'm mad, but I don't hate her."

"She thinks you do."

Beastboy jumped to his feet. "But I don't." He stopped suddenly, "I didn't say it, I forgot to say it!"

To Cyborg he looked confused, almost lost as he stood there. After waiting a beat Cyborg waived at the door, "What are you standing here for, git."

Beastboy took off, almost running into Robin as he came out onto the roof. "Cyborg, what's going on?"

"What makes you think somethings going on?"

"I heard something from the infirmary. I went down there and it's empty, but there's a dent in the wall."

Before Cyborg could respond, his communicator chirped. Beastboy's voice came from it sounding panicked. "She's gone!"

"Dude, check her room."

"I did, there was a note."

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Beastboy, my love, as trite as it sounds now, I am sorry. I always knew that I would screw this up, but I never imagined that I would ruin everything so completely. For a while, we were happy, and if I could turn back the clock to that time, I would, but it is too late for that. You were happy with me for a while, and you were happy once before me. I only hope that you can be happy with her again.

Raven

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Raven touched down at the mouth of the cave. She worked her way through the dark tunnel, her demonic parentage giving her nearly perfect night vision. Before long she found the chamber she had been looking for. "I don't know if you can here me. I don't think you can, but… don't screw it up. I ruined things with him, I know I did, but he forgave you. Even for betraying us, he forgave you."

Raven stepped up to the lone statue standing in the middle of the room, Terra frozen in place for nearly a year. "I've known how to do this for a long time, the only way to bring you back, but… I was never willing to pay the price for it." She reached out one hand, slowly. "I am now." She rested her hand almost gently on Terra's shoulder and concentrated, focusing her energy.

"Take care of him. He'll be sad for a while, but you always made him happy." As she spoke, Raven sank to her knees, always careful to keep in contact with the statue. "Make him happy again."

With those words, Raven collapsed fully at Terra's feet. For just a moment nothing happened, but slowly Terra's stone body softened, warmed. A moment later she nearly fell forward, catching her feet on the still form.

Terra looked around the room, confused. "Where'd everybody go?" She looked down and saw Raven. "What happened? Raven?" She knelt, and touched Raven gently on the shoulder, then rolled her onto her back. When Raven still didn't respond, Terra pressed two fingers to the side of her throat, confirming her worst fears, Raven was dead.


	4. The Magician

A/N: Hey, short one tonight. Seemed like a good place to end it, though. Hope you enjoy it.

Currently Untitled

Chapter 4

Terra was still kneeling over Raven's body when she heard the sound of heavy metal feet coming down the passage into the cave. A moment later, a green bird darted into the cavern, and shifted into Beastboy. He hit the ground hard, but came up fast, running to Raven's side.

He pulled Raven away from Terra, pulling her into his lap as he began to sob uncontrollably. Cyborg stepped up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Dude, let me see her." When Beastboy didn't respond, Cyborg sighed and hit him hard on the back of the head. Beastboy collapsed silently.

"What's going on?" Terra asked, a tremble in her voice.

"Long story." He checked Raven over carefully. "You got your powers?"

"Yeah."

"Get us to the tower, now."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Beastboy woke to the sound of steady beeping. He sat up from the hard bed that he was laying on, and looked around the small infirmary. On the bed next to him was Raven. A variety of machines were around her, attached to her. A tube entered her mouth, several IVs were in one arm, wires snaked under the medical gown that she wore. Her face was deathly pale, her features drawn. He reached one hand out to her, but stopped. His hand was covered in a thick cast, holding his fingers out stiffly.

"Bout time you woke up."

Beastboy turned to see that Cyborg sat on the other side of his bed. "She's okay."

Cyborg sighed, not meeting Beastboy's pleading gaze. "I don't know, man. I don't know what's wrong with her. She's not injured, physically she's in perfect health, except..."

"Except what?"

"She's on life support. I've got probes sunk into her heart to force it to beat, and a ventilator forcing her lungs to work. Without that she dies."

"But she's alive?"

"There's still some activity on the EEG, the thing that reads her brain's activity. It means that as long as the machines keep her body running, her mind is still alive. It looks like a deep dream state right now."

"She's going to be okay, though? Isn't she?"

"I don't know, man. I just… I've done everything I can. Robin's put in some calls to the Justice League. They told him to track down someone, Zatanna the Magician or something like that."

"What's she going to do?"

"Dunno, but whatever is wrong with Raven has to do with magic. We're at our wits end, man."

"When are they getting back?"

"Dunno, shouldn't be too long. She was doing a show…"

Beastboy shot up, "A show? She's actually a magician, like a stage magician?!"

"I guess. That doesn't mean a thing man, most super heroes don't live twenty four seven as super heroes."

Beastboy sighed as he dropped back to the bed. "Right, right." He turned to stare at Raven's still form. "I hope they get here soon."

"Me too, man."

"Did I see Terra?"

"Yeah, Raven woke her up, I think. She's out cold right now. While you were out, I removed her armor surgically. Nasty stuff, ties in tight to your nervous system. She'll be awake tomorrow."

"That's where Star is then, huh?"

"Yeah, just in case anything happens."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Beastboy and Cyborg passed most of the evening, and into the early morning sitting in silence. As dawn neared, both Titans could hear the sound of footsteps coming up the hallway. One set was easily identifiable as Robin's boots, the other sounded like a pair of high heals clicking in staccato down the tiled floor. "Sounds like they're here." Cyborg said, straightening up.

"It's about time."

The door opened and Robin entered, followed by a tall, black haired woman in what was obviously the costume of a stage magician. A tuxedo top with long tails over a leotard, and fishnet stockings topped off by a top hat and cane. She immediately went to Raven's bedside, studying her thoughtfully. "Huh, an actual nephilum, a half demon. I didn't think that any still existed."

"This isn't a show." Beastboy snapped.

Zatana looked up at him, surprised. "I'm sorry. It's just kind of an experience for me, half demons are very rare these days."

"What's wrong with her?"

"I don't know. Tell me what happened, and I'll probably be able to answer your question."

Cyborg answered before Beastboy had a chance. "We think it has to do with her bringing Terra back."

"Who's that now?"

"Terra is a super hero who can control anything that comes out of the ground, dirt and rocks and stuff. She stopped a volcano from erupting that would have wiped out most of the city, but was turned to stone."

"And Raven brought her back?"

"Yeah."

"Then I know what happened. It was a side effect of the spell that she used." She sighed, seeming to prepare herself for the explanation. "Magical beings, those with inborn powers, are dependant on having a certain amount of stored power. They pull their power from the world around them, and generate some of it. If such a being was ever drained, they die. It sounds as though Terra is a geomancer, a very powerful form of magic. The fact that she stopped a volcano speaks volumes about her own level of power. She drained herself, though, which is why she became a statue."

Zatana looked back down at Raven. "There is a very powerful, very difficult spell that would restore power to one who has drained their own reserves. The only problem is that it required the caster to sacrifice themselves, they are drained in order to restore the target of the spell."

"So you're saying that Raven knew what she was doing?" Robin asked her.

"Most definitely. There's no way she would have known how to do the spell without knowing the dangers as well."

"Can you help her?" Beastboy asked, though he already knew the answer.

"No. Only a handful of people could even cast the spell, and they are all in important positions right now, protecting this world from attacks. And even if I could, why? She knew what she was doing, she knew that she would die."

Beastboy fought tears as Zatana spoke. "It was my fault that she did this. She thought that I hated her." He looked up suddenly, heedless of his tears. Anger burned in his eyes. "I wouldn't let her do it again."

Zatana crossed her arms, her gaze traveling back and forth between Raven and Beastboy. "There may be someone…"

"Who?" Beastboy asked.

"No." All eyes turned to Robin. "She is important to us, but no one is important enough to sacrifice another life for. I'm sorry, Beastboy, I truly am, but I will not have any else die for her."

Beastboy growled and started pushing himself out of the bed. "If she can be saved, nothing will…"

"Enough." Zatana broke in. "Honestly, I don't know that the Justice League was thinking putting a bunch of teenagers under one roof." She muttered to herself before continuing. "The man I know won't have to sacrifice himself, if he can help her. He might not be able to help her, though."

"How do I contact him?" Beastboy asked, his face more serious than the others had ever seen.

"You don't. I'll talk to him, he'll contact you soon, probably tonight."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Beastboy studied Raven's still form. She seemed diminished, somehow, as though she had shrunken into herself. The tangle of wires and tubes did nothing to help that perception. He reached out tentatively and took her hand, feeling her warmth and reassuring himself that, for now at least, she lived.


End file.
